The Bridge
MU develops “Check-in App” to assist in campus contract tracing In the summer of 2020, as University leadership and staff sought to put in place a robust plan to allow for the safe return to campus for staff and students (and in line with all government guidelines and protocols), one thing became abundantly clear: stopping the virus from spreading on campus would be one key to keeping it open. That would mean identifying cases, and contacts, as quickly as possible. That’s no small task, even if the overall population on campus at any one time would be reduced. So, MU researchers put their expertise
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and ingenuity to work. A team from the Department of Computer Science and the Department of Electronic Engineering went to work developing the MU Checkin App. Students were asked to download the technology and use it to scan QR codes labelled on every classroom seat and various other locations around campus. The purpose: to understand where people were located on campus, so in the event of a positively identified case, MU could assist the HSE in identifying close contacts quickly. As of the time of publication, Level 5 restrictions forced all but a small group of labs and practicals from taking place on campus – so the app has yet to really be put to the test. No doubt, though, that the Maynooth University Check-in App will be yet another bespoke and important tool to help the entire campus community play their part as (hopefully!) more on-campus learning resumes in 2021.
Will a Covid vaccine be effective in patients with obesity? Dr Andy Hogan
Thanks to a generous donor, Dr Andy Hogan and his team are hoping to find out In 2020, two global pandemics met: Covid-19 and Obesity. One in four Irish adults are living with obesity. Emerging evidence has shown that people living with obesity are at greater risk with Covid-19, with higher rates of hospitalisation, ICU admission and death. This places people with obesity as one of the most at risk groups. The most-likely exit from Covid-19 is the roll-out of a safe and effective vaccine. Worryingly, previous research has shown that vaccines such as the H1N1 influenza and Hepatitis B vaccines are less effective in people with obesity. A potential reason for this lack of efficacy may be defects in the immune system of people with obesity, as was observed when
studying the H1N1 influenza. A robust immune response is critical for successful immunity following infection with or vaccination against various pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2. Whether people with obesity generate protective immunity to SARS-CoV-2 remains unclear and forms a very important question. Dr Andrew Hogan (BSc 2004, PhD 2009) from Maynooth University’s Kathleen Lonsdale Institute for Human Health Research is aiming to address this unknown. Dr Hogan and his research team received a €65,000 gift from an anonymous donor this year to investigate if people with obesity previously infected with SARS-CoV-2 generate the same protective immunity as those with a healthy bodyweight. In a parallel study funded through a €300,000 grant from the National Children’s Research Centre, Dr Féaron Cassidy and PhD student Ms Andrea Woodcock from Dr Hogan’s team are trying to pinpoint the exact link in the vaccination chain that is broken in obesity. These studies will provide critical information and may lead to new vaccination approaches.
